Transactions of the American Philological Association 113 (1983) 39-54

"DREAM SCENES" IN HOMER,

A STUDY IN VARIATION*

JAMESF. MORRIS
College of Charleston

There are seven passages in Homer in which a supernatural figure visits a

mortal who has retired for the evening.1 These scenes share a common
structure and components:2 it is night and people retire; the visitant arrives,
stands above the person, speaks, and departs; the person reacts; then dawn
arises. There are two more regular details, a description of the person and
the likeness of the visitant, but their placement varies. These two details,
along with certain aspects of the standing motif in Od. 6 and 15, have given
rise to criticism. W. Arend sees no pattern in the handling of the likeness
and finds descriptions lacking in four scenes.3 D. Gunn treats the descrip-
tion of the visited person in terms too general to account for the poet's
precise variation of it, and he criticizes the variable handling of the likeness

* This article is an
expanded version of a paper read at the APA Annual Meeting in New
Orleans in 1980. I wish to express my gratitude to Dr. Bernard Fenik of the University of
Cincinnati for-his helpful criticism of an earlier draft of this study and for his guidance when
I first dealt with this topic in a doctoral dissertation directed by him in 1978. I wish also to
thank the two anonymous readers whose criticisms improved my analyses at important
points.
I In the Odyssey the scenes are Athena's visits: to Penelope in the guise of Iphthime
calming her worry about Telemachus' fate (4.786-5.2); to Nausicaa disguised as the
daughter of Dymas instructing her to go to the shore to wash clothes in preparation for
her wedding (5.481-6.48); to Telemachus at Sparta urging him to return home (14.518-
15.56); and to Odysseus comforting him as he worries how he can destroy the suitors alone
(19.600-20.91). In the Iliad they are the visits: of the dream sent by Zeus to Agamemnon
bidding him to arm his men and to take Troy (1.605-2.48); of Patroclus' spirit to Achilles
demanding that he perform his funeral as quickly as possible (23.58-110); and of Hermes
to Priam urging him to leave the Greek camp (24.673-95). The sources for Greek quota-
tions are T. W. Allen, Iliad and Odyssey (Oxford 1920 and 1917-19). The structure of
each scene is outlined in the appendix. In the discussion to follow I refer to each scene by
its book number only. Generally, when discussing structure, I refer to the various elements
only by name. The reader may refer to the appendix for specific line numbers.
2 For a bibliographical guide to structural analyses of type-scenes in Homer, see Mark W.
Edwards, "The Structure of Homeric Catalogues," TAPA 110 (1980) 81, note 1.
3 Die typischen Scenen bei Homer (Berlin 1933) 61-63 and 56, note 2. This work is
hereafter referred to as Scenen.
40 James F. Morris

element.4 He considers the scene in Od. 6 to be clumsy, and he discovers

formal irregularities in Od. 15, including a variation in the standing motif.
Arend also notes this variation and attributes it to certain formal constraints
which, he thinks, influenced the poet.
My purpose in this study is to show that Homer's variation of the
description, likeness, and standing elements in these scenes is typologically
consistent and meaningful in its context. I begin by reexamining Arend's
and Gunn's analyses of the general form of the "dream scene." I argue that
there are two regular patterns in the placement of the description and like-
ness elements and that one is formally associated with scenes which contain
monologues and the other with scenes which contain dialogues. After revis-
ing the typology of the scenes in this way, I reconsider Arend's and Gunn's
analyses of specific details in Od. 6, 20, and 15. My aim here is to establish
the formal significance of these details and then to examine what literary
effects they achieve.
Arend's demonstration that the "dream scene" is a variant of the
"arrival"theme is fundamental to any analysis. It serves, therefore, as the
starting point of our investigation. His "arrival"consists of the following
structure:5
1. setting out (,8i etc.)
2. arriving (''KavEv);1 and 2 may be merged into one expression of
movement
3. finding (erpe) the person sought sitting, standing, or busy with
something
3a. mention of the people in the company of the one visited (aA0qL)
4. standing near (Trapioraro)
5. speaking
According to Arend, Homer creates a "dream scene" out of an "arrival"
as follows: first, he adds the motifs "night" and "sleep" and places them
before the visitant's setting out and arrival (1 and 2). Second, he de-
scribes the person sought only as sleeping (3). Third, he has the visitant
stand above the person's head (r-rij a' dp' {vrep KEafaA7s) instead of
standing near (4). Finally, after (5), he describes the person's reaction
and the visitant's departure.6 Although Arend correctly established the

4 "Thematic
Composition and Homeric Authorship," HSCP 75 (1971) 15-17. This work
is hereafter referred to as "Thematic Composition."
5 Scenen 28. For his
commentary on "simple arrival," "visit," and "message" scenes see
28-61. For the "dream" see 61-63.
6 Arend (Scenen 99-105) analyzes
"sleep scenes" and attributes three elements to them:
night, sleep, and dawn. Our scenes may be considered "sleep scenes" whose sleep elements
have been elaborated by the arrival of a supernatural visitant. In the structural outlines in the
appendix, therefore, I have listed dawn as the final element. Note, however, that in Od. 6
Nausicaa's reaction follows dawn. This makes the Olympus scene (42-46) which elaborates
Athena's departure more conspicuous. Comment on the Olympus scene's structural and
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 41

basic lines of formal kinship between the "dream" and "arrival," his
structural analysis suffers from three weaknesses. First, he is wrong when
he insists that the visited person must be asleep. Second, although he
recognizes the likeness element in all arrivals, he fails to see its regular
placement.7 Third, he does not observe how in some "dream scenes" the
poet varies the third element of the "arrival" theme by placing it early
in the scene. This last problem is taken up now, the others later after
certain aspects of Gunn's analyses are examined.
Arend identifies the third element only in Od. 6 and 15 and I1. 2. In
the others he simply says that it is lacking. This element consists of two
items, a verb of finding and a description of the person sought.8 In Od.
15 and 11.2 the visitant finds the visited person sleeping:
evpe 8b T7iXEjaxov KaL Neo'ropos ayXaov vtov
EV8OVT' Ev 7polAOw MeveAhcov Kvb8aiL.olo, (Od. 15.4-5)

,.j ba8 p' Er' 'ArpeL'tr7v'Ayalueljvova rov 8b KlXavEv

ev'ovrT ev KAi-7ln, reppl 8 alalSpoTLosKEXV' "v'rvos.(II. 2.18-19)

In Od. 6 Homer omits the detail of finding and merely describes the
visited person as sleeping when the visitant arrives:
,i3j ' I/.Lev Es daAa.uov7roXvbal8aXov, ,) 'vt KOVpr?
KOLt/ar1aOavar a'T V7iVKaL E8
Ios' .olrl,
Nav-LrKaa, OvyarTrlpjLyaXrTropo 'AXKLvdoOo,
7rap 8v'8 aplT7roXoL,
l XaplroTv awroKaAXose'Xovoral,
(-raOMoiT'v eKarepO' Ov'paL8' 'reTKELVT7o f aElvaL.
) 8' avEov xa)S7rvoLrL eTerVTO KOVpTX....
beE.La (15-20)

In the other four scenes he varies the "arrival" pattern by omitting the
finding verb as he did in Od. 6 and by describing the person to be visited
before the arrival of the visitant. In Od. 4 Penelope falls asleep pondering
her son's fate, and the phantom comes to her; in II. 23 Achilles falls asleep
on the shore groaning, and Patroclus' shade visits him; in II. 24 Priam is
sleeping when Hermes appears; and in Od. 20 Odysseus is in bed restlessly
pondering how he can destroy the suitors, and Athena arrives.9 The poet,
thematic significance appears below in the discussion of Gunn's analysis of Od. 6. Also for
Nausicaa to be up and active before dawn would complicate her effort to conceal her per-
sonal interest in washing the clothes (cf. 57ff.).
7 Regarding sleep he writes (Scenen 63), "Der Sinn der Traumszene verlangt, dass der
Traum den Menschen schlafend antrifft . . ," and in his discussion of "message scenes,"
in which the messenger is a god in disguise, he says (56, note 2), "Die Beschreibung der
menschlichen Gestalt des Gottes hat keinen festen Platz im Schema... ."
8 For examples of Arend's third element in "arrival scenes" see II. 2.169-70, 10.150-51,
18.4-5, and 11.771-72; in "visit scenes" see II. 9.186-87 and 18.372-73; and in "message
scenes" see II. 1.329-30, 3.125-26, and 11.197-98.
9 Note that in Od. 4 Penelope is the only person to retire, but elsewhere people other
than the one visited have retired and are already asleep when the visitant arrives. These
other people are: Penelope (Od. 20), the other Greeks (II. 23), Odysseus (Od. 6), Odysseus
42 James F. Morris

therefore, does describe the visited person in each scene; however, he does
this before the visitant's arrival in some scenes and after it in others. The
usefulness of this variation is explained later.
We now turn to Gunn's typological analyses. He describes the scenes
in a more general way and finds in them
a commonstructureof elementswhichfit easilyintothe naturalshape
of the scene:the personto be visitedlies ponderingor sleeping,or in
somecase(s)hasgonethroughbothstates;the visitantdrawsnearin the
likenessof someoneknownto the visitedand standsabovethe latter's
head; the visitantspeaksand departs,whereuponthe other usually
awakensorspringsup,if asleep,orgoesto sleepif awake.10
Gunn advances our understanding of the "dream scene" in two ways. He
accurately observes that the visited person may be asleep, awake, or go
through both states, and his title, "supernatural visitant," expresses more
precisely the theme of these scenes than does Arend's "dream scene" with
its emphasis on sleep."l His treatment of the description and likeness ele-
ments, however, is inadequate. In the summary quoted above he only
grants formal significance to descriptions which precede the visitant's
arrival12and to the likeness when it precedes the standing element. He
considers the scenes which deviate from this pattern to be exceptional.
Gunn does not comment more on the description of the person
visited, but evaluates in detail the likeness. First, he approves of Od. 4
and 20 and II. 23 where the likeness precedes the standing element on
the grounds that this arrangement allows the visitant's speech to follow
naturally from the last half of a whole-line formula of standing and
speaking.13 Second, of the two scenes where likeness follows standing he
judges II. 2 to be unusual but acceptable:
O-T?j8 ' p v7rEp KEfCaA?rsNXATICOwvlt EOlKw',
NEoTrop, rov pa ipaAldX a yEpOTvrwv Tr 'AyaAaelVOwv
OEos "OVlpos' . . . (20-22)
TCrIJLVeeiadl.eEvos 7rpOOCeWV^eE

Here the poet replaces the speaking in the last half of the whole-line for-
mula with likeness (20) and then proceeds to the speech with a line of
likeness and speaking (22). But Gunn finds problems with Od. 6:

and Eumaeus (Od. 15), all gods and men (II. 2), and the herald, Priam, Achilles and
Briseis, and all other gods and men (II. 24). For line references see the night and retiring
element in the appendix.
1) "Thematic Composition" 15.
1 The essential fact is not that the person visited is asleep as the title "dream scene"
implies,
but that it is night and the person is in bed when the visitant arrives. Nevertheless, through-
out this paper I have found it convenient to use Arend's terminology instead of Gunn's.
12 In contrast, Arend with the third element in his typology (finding the person sleeping)
accounts only for descriptions which follow arrival.
13 Od. 4.803 = 6.21 = 20.32 = II. 23.68 = 24.682:
orTj a' ap' 7rEp KEcjaX\ts KcaLiLv 7rpos lVOO
0V EtEL7E.
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 43

orij 8' ap' v7rp KeaA;ijs, Kat Iltv 7rpbos ,.Vov E"'ETEv,
EtLboILEvT?KOVp, vavLK?i\ELTolo AvziavroT,
q ol O6.AIKLt .EV E'7V, KEXaPLOTro be OvjU.
Tn) /Li eE?L'al.ev717rpocrpiEl yXavKCt7rTs 'AOrvT' .. ..(21-24)

Unlike in II. 2, the whole-line formula (21) remains intact so that the
likeness is delayed till the next line. This arrangement necessitates a
summing-up line of likeness and speaking (24), which, in Gunn's judg-
ment, renders the speaking half of the whole-line formula a "clumsy
redundancy." He proposes that the conservative force of the whole-line
formula prevented this passage from following the more acceptable pat-
tern of II. 2. Third, of the two scenes where the likeness is omitted, he
correctly sees no difficulty in II. 24. Since Hermes has already met Priam
in disguise (347-48) and has revealed his identity (461), his earlier form
may be assumed for his reappearance in this scene (682). With Od. 15,
however, Gunn again sees trouble. The omission of the likeness in combi-
nation with a change in the standing half of the whole-line formula to
ayXov 8' lo-ral.e'v7 (9) leads him to conclude that the middle of this
scene is typologically irregular.
Gunn's analysis fails because it misses the structural significance of
repetition in Od. 6 and the finer typology in the distribution of the like-
ness and description. This typology is observable in the structural out-
lines in the appendix. Note that all but two of the scenes under study, II.
24 and Od. 15, have both a description and likeness, and when both
these occur, the description always comes first. There are two patterns:
When the description of the person precedes the visitant's arrival, the
visitant's likeness precedes its standing (Od. 4 and 20 and II. 23). When,
however, description follows arrival, the likeness follows standing (Od. 6
and II. 2). Furthermore, these patterns are associated formally with the
speaking elements, which are also of two kinds: monologues and dia-
logues. The scenes with description and likeness in the earlier position
contain dialogues whereas those with them in the later position contain
monologues.'4 Thus, despite their fixed sequence15 of night, arriving,
standing, speaking, departing, reaction and dawn, these scenes subdivide

14 II. 24 also contains a

monologue but is a special case. Hermes guides Priam into and
out of the Greek camp and appears to him as a visitant as well. Several unusual features
result from this. First, Hermes' arrival and likeness are omitted (see, however, 346-48).
Second, Priam is described among the people who retire at the beginning of the scene,
not after them. Last, the visitant's departure is delayed. Although Hermes presumably
goes to the stables (cf. 690-91) after he visits Priam, there is no mention of it. After the
party safely reaches the Xanthus river, Hermes departs for Olympus (694).
15 On the matter of fixity in the positioning of elements in a type-scene see B. Fenik,
Typical Battle Scenes in the Iliad (Wiesbaden 1968) 5, 26, 92, and 229; Gunn, "Thematic
Composition" 30; Mark W. Edwards, "Type-scenes and Homeric Hospitality," TAPA 105
(1975) 71; and J. B. Hainsworth, "Joining Battle in Homer," G&R 13 (1966) 160 and 163.
44 James F. Morris

into two groups, each one with a different but regular complementary
pattern. As for Gunn's strictures against the placement of the likeness
after the standing element, this arrangement is neither unusual nor
exceptional;16it is typical of scenes with monologues.
These sub-patterns are not fortuitous; rather, they are well adapted
to their narrative contexts. In monologue scenes, when the visitant first
arrives, the person sought is asleep and, with the exception of Priam in
II. 24, has not appeared in the previous episodes. For example, Athena's
visit to Nausicaa in Od. 6 is preceded by Odysseus' arrival on the shore
of Scherie; her visit to Telemachus in Od. 15 is preceded by Odysseus'
long evening conversation with Eumaeus; and the baneful dream's visit
to Agamemnon in II. 2 is preceded by the quarrel between Zeus and
Hera. Thus, the visitant comes into an inactive situation, but more im-
portantly it comes with a purpose in mind and issues instructions
designed to achieve it. In Od. 6 Athena's aim is to contrive Odysseus'
return (vdO(rrov' OSv--ra'jiieyaXhTropt 71rtLowoaa,14). Nausicaa's faithful
adherence to her instructions advances Odysseus' homecoming. In Od.
15 Athena's purpose is to remind Telemachus of his return and to hasten
him on his way (vdoarov v'ro.vtao'ovafa Kat oTpvveovraa veerOat, 3). His
immediate response to her instructions brings him safely and quickly
home. In II. 2 the dream is carrying out Zeus' plan to honor Achilles and
destroy many Greeks:
aAA' o' yE .EP.ApLCE KaTa fpeva os 'AxLtAja
I
rt.jaj, oAXcr' be. 7roAa. '7r vTv\r v 'AXaLcv. (3-4)

Agamemnon's enthusiastic acceptance of its advice sets Zeus' plan in

motion. Finally, in Il. 24 Hermes appears to Priam because of concern
for his safety:

op.lalvovr ava vp.bov

b'-rlw HpTalJov/3acrheja
VtV Xaawv4Epos
EKTrELf'tAiELE 7rvAawpovs. (680-81)

Following Hermes' orders, Priam quickly leaves the Greek camp at

night and returns safely to Troy with Hector's body. Here Arend's "ar-
rival" typology is perfect: It is night, people have retired, the visitant
arrives, finds the person asleep, stands above his head, speaks, departs,
and the visited person reacts by immediately following the visitant's
instructions.
As mentioned above (note 9), other people are already asleep when the
visitant comes to the person sought. Homer uses this detail to help create
significant parallels between Od. 6 and 15. Both scenes begin with Odys-
seus bedding down and going to sleep in another locality, at the shore in

16 In some
"message scenes" where the messenger is a god in a disguise the likeness is
also placed after the standing element. See II. 2.791-94, 17.584-85 and compare 3.385-89.
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 45

Scherie (5.481ff.) and in Eumaeus' hut in Ithaca (14.518ff.). Then, by car-

rying out Athena's instructions each person is led ultimately to a meeting
with Odysseus in his original location. Thus, the appearance of Odysseus in
the retiring element of Od. 15 through its formal kinship with Od. 6 subtly
prepares for his meeting and reunion with his son. Furthermore, Athena's
common purpose in visiting both Nausicaa and Telemachus echoes an
important thematic link between Telemachus and his father. They both
have a nostos and accomplish it under Athena's divine patronage.17
In dialogue scenes instead of coming to instruct an inactive person to
do something, the visitant comes and addresses concerns which the person
has and which have been developed in the preceding episodes. In Od. 4
and 20 Athena comforts Penelope and Odysseus. Penelope earlier in the
day has learned of the suitors' plot against her son (4.675ff.), and so when
she retires that evening she falls asleep worrying about his safety (788-94).
The visitant arrives, speaks to her concerns, and she wakes up comforted.
Odysseus has spent the day in the palace experiencing first-hand the
suitors' insolence. After his interview with Penelope in which the bow con-
test is set he retires and unable to sleep worries how he can destroy the
suitors. Athena arrives, reassures him, and so he goes to sleep freed from his
worry. In II. 23 the visitant addresses Achilles' concern, but instead of
relieving it, he intensifies it. After dragging Hector's body into the Greek
camp, Achilles tells how he has fulfilled his vow to avenge Patroclus' death.
Then he meets with Agamemnon to arrange Patroclus' funeral for the next
morning (43-53). When Achilles retires, he lies on the shore groaning
deeply until he falls asleep. Patroclus' shade comes and demands immedi-
ate burial. Achilles wakes up startled and sorrowful and proceeds with the
funeral. In these scenes the description of the person actually causes the
arrival of the visitant and introduces details out of which the dialogue
grows. For the continuity of action here Arend's third "arrival"element
(description after arrival) would be otiose, and so Homer has moved it
forward to a dramatically useful position.
The different narrative qualities of the two groups are summarized
as follows. Dialogues occur as an episode within a narrative sequence
which is in progress, viz. the reactions of the suitors and Penelope to
Telemachus' journey to the Peloponnesus (Od. 4); the interview between
Penelope and the beggar, setting up the bow contest and the destruction
of the suitors (Od. 20); and the preparation for Patroclus' funeral (Il. 23).
The visited characters are already in the audience's mind, and when
they retire their emotions are vividly depicted. The visitant comes in
response to these descriptions and calms the emotions or intensifies them.
On the other hand, in the monologue scenes the visitation is the initial

17 On Telemachus' association with his father

through the theme of returning avenger
see G. P. Rose, "Quest of Telemachus," TAPA 98 (1967) 391-98.
46 James F. Morris

episode in a narrative sequence, viz. Odysseus among the Phaeacians

(Od. 6); Telemachus' return home (Od. 15); Zeus' beginning to fulfill his
promise to Thetis (II. 2); and Priam's return to Troy with Hector's body
(I1. 24). The impelling and sustaining forces in these sequences are the
arrival of the visitant, its purpose, and the person's faithful response.
We now return to Gunn's and Arend's analyses of certain details. Gunn
criticizes the whole-line formula and the doubling of likeness and speaking
at Od. 6.21-24, but he does this without regard for their function in the
scene's structure. Beginning with Athena's arrival the text reads:
"fQs 6 te'v 'vOaKaOeve 7roAvrAasg Tosg'Obvoa-o-e
v7rvKa Ka.L
KaT-cw ap7rEJ'fVO avap ?Ar'Jvr
p8p Es (aLt rKwv avbpwv brlov' TE 7T0Xor TE,
OL7rpLVpMEv7TOTEvaLov Ev EVPVXOPWXYn'pEl,
ayXov KvKX\Tr7rw, avpbpwvV pr 'opEOvdVrv, 5
OL r*cEaa C-tLV-KOVLTO, /3pl)L 8Ef (prEpot r0-av.
E'vOev avaao'r7)Tasaye Navortoos OIeoirts,
ErELv' e X(pLY, EKa v Ap a XYracv,
I A,
a<plt bEro
TELXOs Kal e4eiLaTO OLKOVs,
EAarcrE7TroXE,
KaLEa-(TaaT'
Kal vrLOVSTTol7roa OEwLV, apovpas. 10
aAA' 6 uv 7j7L e
K7p\Lbae?LS "^'Ai'd te/37KEL,
'AAKivoos 8e ror' apxE, Oe&v cro uO'bea ei8os'
TOV /iev
EfL' 7Trpob8M a Ohe yAavKW7Ts 'AOivrl,
VO0-TOVL Obvo-iL `,ufyaXrlropl
vI?r7ov 'Ov(rar-i M?yaX7,TOpLI~rmoo{)ra.
pA77TLOW6-a.
b iELV Es OadXaaAov
j3i 8' 7rohv8atliaov, c, EVI KOVp 15
KOL,arT aOav'arTr- 4pvv7 Kat EbIOSf OMOIo,
Navo-LKaa,OvyaTrrip EyaA)jTropos'AAKiL'oo,
7rap 88Ebvi' aM roAot, XapL'rov a7ToKaAAXosEXov-aL,
OvpaL ' E7TEKELVTO
araoijOi'v EKarTpOC' (f)avai.
7) a'avuov Zs9 7r
T OL? Ee3LvLa
Ere--'Vro KooprlS, 20
a ap v7TrpKEf4ahx7), KaLt
oTTD7 1VoL'V
iLV 7TpOSb EeLtEL',
KOVp7 vavforKXiELTO0o
oELO8El'vr71 Avzlavros,
i oL oL7AXtK,LKI)
ILeVei?v, KexaptLOro8e OVI,A.
EELta!aLEvr?
T7 EiLVv 7rpo<re5r7i
yAavKW7TLi 'AOivjvr
[Athena's instructions (25-40)].
'H E.E'ap ?s e7rovoT' aT7rTefr yXavK(o)7rT 'AOtjv
Ov 7T4vt ', o0 fa0rL OeWv L' 0 ao-<paAcao?i
t I I ,1
EE,uEvaLe' OVTI aveUolOLi raE OVTE7TOT Op.opCp
TLrtaorCT
81eveTaL Ovire XT coU ETLrt7rl ar, a aAAAa a 'A
dA' aipr
7TE7TTraTaL avE0EX9oS, AEvK7)8' E7TriopoELv al'yXk' 45
I ,, , , ^ \ ,, t
T(O) EL Tep7rovTaLL EoLr7lpaTa 7ravra.
aKapeS
E' a7rr/3)ryXavKrw7TLs, 8irerppa8e KOvp.
ET'rrEl

Repetition in this scene is finely controlled. First, lines 21-24 form a ring
with speaking and likening in chiastic arrangement.18 Second, the dou-
bling of speaking and departing verbs at the conclusion of the instructions

18 Note that the

speaking verbs are finite and the likening verbs are participles. This
strengthens both the ring and the chiasmus.
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 47

creates a similar chiastic ring (41-47). Third, Athena's speech as a whole

through its introductory (21 and 24) and concluding verbs of speaking (41
and 47) encloses the likeness and departure inside a still larger speech ring.
The poet creates these three rings by repeating the speaking verb four
times and placing after the first, second, and third respectively the likeness,
the instructions, and a description of Olympus. This pattern is balanced by
a similar one which occurs in the arrival element. There are four expres-
sions of arriving and each one draws Athena gradually closer to Nausicaa:
first to the city (3), next to the palace (13), then to the chamber (15), and
finally to her bed (20). The poet holds up Athena's progress at each stage by
placing between them respectively a brief Phaeacian history (3-12),
Athena's statement of purpose (14), and the description of Nausicaa
(15-19).19 The standing line provides a transition between the last expres-
sion of arrival and the first expression of speech (20-21). The two balanced
patterns generate a carefully controlled movement which starts in a gliding
linear direction that transforms itself efficiently into a series of flowing
rings at the whole-line standing and speaking formula (21). This formula
exercises no constraining force on the poet in this scene.20
The Phaeacian history (3-12) and the Olympus scene (42-46) do
more than interrupt the visitant's arrival and departure and generate
structural repetition. The history with its reference to the Cyclopes
reminds us that the fantasy world has two aspects and that Odysseus is
now passing from its violent, cruel, and strange aspect into one that is
more comprehensible and favorable.21 Furthermore, its reference to the

19 On
interruptions as a stylistic characteristic of Homer see B. Fenik, Studies in the
Odyssey (Wiesbaden 1974) 61ff.
20 The association of such a whole-line formula with a chiastic likeness
ring is not excep-
tional. The pattern of standing, speaking, likeness, likeness, and speaking also appears in
Iris' visit to the Trojan assembly in II. 2.790-91 and 795:
ayXov b' Lr'TaiLevfl7rpocrE14]7roSaas(oKa IpLs'
etr'aro 8e Ooyyr7j VrL npLaptoto nohXTrn ....
Tr tJLV tErTalEJV?7TrpoCP( To
rasg oKCaa 'Ipls' . ..
The chiastic pattern of speaking and likeness is repeated again at II. 17.582-85, but with-
out the whole-line formula. Also at II. 3.386-89 likeness and speaking are doubled, but
without chaismus and with the standing element omitted.
21 See Charles P. Segal, "The Phaeacians and the Symbolism of Odysseus' Return," Arion
1 (1962) 33-34 and 59, note 10. He also sees the reference to their "community and city"
(3) and its wall, houses, and land division (9-10) as evidence of their fondness for society
and notes how this contrasts with loneliness and lack of human contact on Ogygia. Thus,
Odysseus' arrival among the Phaeacians is interpreted as a major step in his return to
humanity (21-22). Regarding Odysseus' and the Phaeacians' common experience with the
Cyclopes, Edwin Dolin, "Odysseus in Phaeacia," Grazer Beitrige 1 (1973) 278-80,
observes that the Phaeacians and the Cyclopes are both descendants of Poseidon, and
although they formerly had escaped from the Cyclopes (5-8), Odysseus' presence now
brings them back into the contact that Nausithous had broken. Thus, when Odysseus
escapes Polyphemus' curse through the aid of the Phaeacians, the remainder of Poseidon's
48 James F. Morris

Phaeacians' collectivity, reverence for the gods, and orderliness foreshad-

ows their kindly reception of him. Similarly, the description of Olympus
unshaken by wind, untouched by rain or snow, and with its clear skies
and radiant whiteness echoes the complete shelter from wind, sun, and
rain which the olive thicket provides Odysseus near the shore (5.478-81)
and also prefigures the calm and perfect safety that Odysseus finds
among the Phaeacians. In addition, security is the common theme of the
olive thicket, the Phaeacian history, and the Olympus scene. Athena is
associated with each, through her shedding sleep over Odysseus in the
thicket, her visit to the Phaeacian princess, and her return to Olympus.
The stated purpose of her involvement, Odysseus' nostos (14), gives
special meaning to this theme for him. Athena is setting in motion his
passage from the insecurity of the world of horrific adventure to the
security of Phaeacia, and this passage will bring him home.
We return now to the problems that arise in Od. 15 when Homer
changes the typical "dream" form of standing from rrTj 8' ap' v7rep
KEfaXqijsto the "arrival" form ayXov b' l'ragezvq7 (9) and gives Athena no
disguise. Gunn offers no solution. He simply considers the scene to be irreg-
ular and attributes this to the poet's uncertainty in narrating the middle
section of this type-scene. Arend, on the other hand, offers a typological
explanation. First, he argues that certain formal constraints which operate
in the "arrival"and "dream" scenes account for both the variation of the
standing element and the well-known contradiction in lines 4-7:
EVpE e T?lXeJaXov Kal NEcrToposayXaov vibv
EV'boVTr' Ev 7rpobOJLu MEvEXaov KvbaX&LtAoLo,
77rot NoTrropLt8rV Vi"v7o
tjaXaK? 86E8LJ1.UEVOV
TrhXepaxov o' ovX iV7vos 'Xe yhVKVs, ahh' ev't Ov.wu ..

According to Arend the difficulty in this scene begins with the poet's
effort to achieve something unusual, viz. portraying the person visited as
awake. But, since the "dream scene" requires that the visited person be
asleep, the poet must depict Telemachus first as sleeping and, only after
doing that, describe him as awake. Moreover, his argument continues,
once the poet refers to Telemachus as awake, a new tension arises
between form and content at the standing line. Now, since the visitant is
meeting a person who is awake, the typical "dream" standing motif must
be changed to a form appropriate for an "arrival."22
Arend's observation that "arrival" forms appear in the scene is
important, but his analysis is incorrect. He does not include Od. 20 in his
study of the "dream" apparently because Odysseus is not asleep when
Athena arrives. Odysseus, of course, is suffering from insomnia, tossing

wrath falls on them (cf. 13.125-87). For an extensive bibliographical guide to the
Phaeacian episode see Dolin 273, note 1.
22 Scenen 62-63.
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 49

and turning and pondering how he can destroy the suitors (5-30). In all
other respects the scene fits the pattern which Arend outlines for the
"dream scene." It begins with Athena shedding sleep on Penelope and
Odysseus retiring:
Es 8 ' v7rep)avaf3aaoa crtv a,uftro'ota' yvvaltt
K?alE?V ETrELT 'Obvo-ira, Vt, Sofpa ol
fAiov 7TOcIVL, VOV
70bvvE'Tr/83AEfapoLOrl
/3fad yXavKcL7rLs 'AO vtl. (19.602-4)

Avrap 6 ev 7rpo0bd0C evd'Vao

LETO s 'Ov
r08O evs..' . (20.1)

The visitant arrives, stands, and speaks:

ovgvo elwov7roXEoTL.arXEdoo0vb ol t1AOev'AOjvr?
ovpavdOev KTarafaa-a'bls b' TiLKTO yvvaLKL
TTl o' ap ' v7rTp KEfaxr)s Kal .LV TpOS /JiVOOV
EEL7T. .. (30-32)

The visitant departs and the visited person reacts:

Qs 4aroa, Kat pa OLV7TPOPE'TTtL3AEapoL(rav E(XEVV,
aVT)l b' qa/ s "OXAvIzVrov
aiKETro bla OOEov.
EVTETOrvj7TVOsiE/ap7rTE,AXvWv iJAXEGbr.arTa OvMpov... (54-56)

Odysseus' wakefulness here is no mistake. Homer is employing it in

ways that are significant for both the immediate and larger contexts.
First, Odysseus' insomnia is symptomatic of his present restless emotional
state.23He is barely able to supress his rage at the disloyal maids' behav-
ior, and his anxiety over the impending crisis with the suitors escalates
intensely as he ponders how he alone can destroy them. As is the manner
in dialogue scenes, Odysseus' mental state precipitates Athena's visit. Her
words settle him down and restore his confidence.24 Second, Homer

23 This is the most elaborate description element in the "dream scenes" and is created out of
pondering motifs, the metaphor of a barking heart, and similes of a bitch protecting her
young and of a sausage flipped back and forth on a grill. For commentary on the poet's use of
all these to portray Odysseus' mental state and of the similes to evoke distant thematic con-
nections see G. P. Rose, "Odysseus' Barking Heart," TAPA 109 (1979) 215-30; Joseph A.
Russo, "Homer against his Tradition," Arion 7 (1968) 289ff.; and Carroll Moulton, Similes in
the Homeric Poems (Gottingen 1977) 141-44. See also Arend (Scenen 110) who observes
that enormous tension exists where Odysseus is in a position of deciding whether to give in to
his first impulse or to persevere. For the view that Odysseus' insomnia reflects impatience
and not a loss of confidence, see F. Focke, Die Odyssee (Stuttgart and Berlin 1943) 339; for a
response see S. Besslich, Schweigen-Verschweigen-Uebergehen. Die Darstellung des
Unausgesprochenen in der Odyssee (Heidelberg 1966) 17 and also E. Belzner, Homerische
Probleme II: Die Komposition der Odyssee (Leipzig and Berlin 1912) 181-82.
24 The conversation between Athena and
Odysseus has been criticized on the grounds that
she does not really respond to his concerns. See A. Kirchhoff, Die homerische Odyssee (Ber-
lin 1879) 526 and also E. Bethe, Homer II (Leipzig 1922) 97; U. von Wilamowitz-
Moellendorf, Die Heimkehr des Odysseus (Berlin 1927) 86; E. Schwartz, Die Odyssee
(Munich 1924) 111; P. Von der Muhll, "Odyssee," RE Suppl. 7 (1940) 751; Focke (above,
note 23) 336; and R. Merkelbach, Untersuchungen zur Odyssee (Munich 1951) 102. For an
50 James F. Morris

masterfully varies Penelope's and Odysseus' states of sleep and wakeful-

ness in order to enhance the intuitive closeness which has been develop-
ing between them since the beggar's arrival at the palace25 as well as to
highlight the psychological distance which remains between them.26
They experience opposite sleep patterns. First, at the end of Od. 19
Penelope retires to her chamber and amid tears is put to sleep by Athena
(600-605). Then, at the beginning of Od. 20 Odysseus remains awake
until Athena reassures him and sheds a comforting sleep over him
(1-56). Next, Penelope, again amid tears, wakes and prays to Artemis for
death although she has just dreamed that Odysseus lay by her side
(57-90). Finally, at dawn Odysseus, hearing her, dreams that she knows
him and is standing by his head (91-94). As Russo points out in his
recent article, Penelope's dream of Odysseus and his waking dream of
her correspond perfectly: each dreams of the other's presence, and the
dreams therefore draw Penelope and Odysseus closer together and con-
tinue the restoration of their homophrosyne (likemindedness) in prepara-
tion for their reunion.27 In contrast to this subconscious harmony, a
degree of disharmony appears in the way they react to their respective
dreams. Penelope is unable to discard her long-standing pessimism and
to overcome her fear of making a mistake or being deceived (cf. 23.215-
17), and so she denies the dream by praying for death.28 Odysseus
responds positively. For him the waking dream represents what he
anticipates: that Penelope will recognize him,29 and so he prays for
omens and is encouraged by them. Penelope's fear and pessimism and
Odysseus' anticipation reveal a psychological distance between them

able defense of the passage see Besslich (above, note 23) 15-18 and also H. Eisenberger,
Stu dien zur Odyssee (Wiesbaden 1973) 174.
25 See Anne
Amory, "The Reunion of Odysseus and Penelope," Essays on the Odyssey,
ed. C. Taylor, Jr. (Bloomington 1963) 100-121; Norman Austin, Archery at the Dark of
the Moon (Berkeley 1975) especially 200-238; and Joseph A. Russo, "Interview and After-
math: Dream, Fantasy, and Intuition in Odyssey 19 and 20," AJP 103 (1982) 4-18. On
the use of similes to associate Odysseus and Penelope before their reunion see Moulton
(above, note 23) 123-25 and 129-32; and A. J. Podlecki, "Some Odyssean Similes," G&R
18 (1971) 84-87. Amory's and Russo's articles are hereafter referred to as "Reunion" and
"Interview" respectively.
26 See U. Holscher, Untersuchungen zur Form der Odyssee (Berlin 1939) 67 and Fenik
(above, note 19) 157-58.
27 "Interview" 18. These dreams are not "objective fact" as the "dream"-visitations are.
See especially E. R. Dodds, The Greeks and the Irrational (Berkeley and Los Angeles
1951) 104-5, 122, note 8.
28 See Amory, "Reunion" 105; and Russo, "Interview" 9. Fenik (above, note 19, 157, cf.
158) observes, "The principal characters in the Odyssey are frozen in their grief after long
years of waiting and disappointment. Pessimism itself becomes a comfort and refuge not
easily put aside when hope might open the door to fresh distress."
29 See Russo, "Interview" 16, on the
significance of hypnopompic dreams.
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 51

which is a counterpoint to their growing intuitive closeness.30 This dis-

tance holds up their reunion and is bridged slowly and only after
identity-confirming secrets of Penelope's own choosing are exchanged
and after Odysseus' anticipation turns to frustration and anger.31 The
alternating sleep pattern in this scene, Penelope asleep and Odysseus
awake and then Odysseus sleeping restfully and Penelope awake in dis-
tress, exemplify this difference between them. Furthermore, the sleep
which Athena sheds over Penelope (19.603-4) keeps her separate from
her husband in two more ways. First, it forestalls the recognition of the
beggar, which seemed to be the inevitable end toward which the inter-
view with the beggar was heading.32 Second, sleep disassociates her from
the wakeful Odysseus as he agonizes over how he alone can prevail
against the suitors. The next day sleep maintains this separation by
excluding Penelope from direct knowledge of Odysseus' triumph over
the suitors (21.357, see also 22.429-31). Penelope and Odysseus are
united in sleep only after their reunion has erased the distance between
them (23.289ff.).33
Od. 20, therefore, with its fruitful use of Odysseus' wakefulness and
with its typical "dream" form refutes Arend's typological explanation of
the variations in Od. 15. It shows that the "dream scene" does not
require that the visited person be asleep.34 Moreover, the presence of
o'rTj ' a'p' Vr7Tp KEfaA,Xs (32) indicates that when the visited person is
awake, the standing element does not inevitably revert to the "arrival"

:30 For an interesting characterization of the different ways in which Odysseus and
Penelope view the world in spite of their homophrosyne see Anne Amory, "The Gates of
orn and Ivory," YCS 20 (1966) 55-56.
:31 W. B. Stanford, The Ulysses Theme (Oxford 1968) 57-58.
32 See
Amory, "Reunion" 106, and Austin (above, note 25) 219-24. For the interpretation
that Penelope does recognize Odysseus see P. W. Harsh, "Penelope and Odysseus in Odys-
sey XIX," AJP 81 (1950) 1-21.
33 Note how even in Od. 4 Penelope's sleep is the reverse of Odysseus' in Od. 20. She
falls asleep worrying about Telemachus, receives the visitant in her sleep, then wakes up.
34
Regarding the contradiction of Telemachus' being first asleep and then awake at Od.
15.5 alnd 7, Arend (Scenen 62, note 2) refers the reader to Il. 1.611 and 2.1-2 and con-
cludes, "Der alte Dichter andert nicht radikal." Zeus goes to sleep, then all the other gods
are asleep, but not Zeus. This stylistic mannerism appears similarly elsewhere. At the end
of II. 9 after Diomedes bids everyone to rest until dawn (705-9), all the kings agree and
return to their huts and sleep (710-15). Then, at the beginning of II. 10 we find that while
all the others sleep, Agamemnon is in fact awake (1-4). Next, we learn that Menelaus isn't
sleeping either (25), nor does even Nestor sleep (73-81). The manner in all these instances
is essentially the same as at Od. 15. We hear first that a character is asleep, and then with-
out explanation we find him awake. For criticism of the incident see D. Page, The
lomeric Odyssey (Oxford 1955) 80, note 6. For the interpretation that Telemachus'
wakefulness is part of a process which prepares him for his future role as ally of his father
seeM'. Nagler, Spontaneity and Tradition (Berkeley 1974) 126, note 23.
52 James F. Morris

form, ayxov 8' L'TraJIevn, which is found at Od. 15.9. This scene, there-
fore, suggests that Homer varies the standing line in Od. 15 for reasons
other than the pressure of his form.
A comparison of the "arrival" with the "dream" scene reveals the
poet's sure touch in employing "arrival" forms in Od. 15. The "arrival"
has the following structure: a person sets out, arrives, finds the person
sought, that person is briefly described, the visiting person then stands
near and speaks. This sequence depicts a straightforward meeting which
brings together two characters on equal terms. In the "dream scene" this
sequence is altered, in most instances, by the introduction of night, the
visited person's being in bed, mention of the visitant's likeness, omission
of an expression of finding, and the visitant's standing above the head
instead of standing near. These alterations portray a more subtle and
indirect meeting than "arrival."35Night, disguise, and sleep (when pres-
ent) obscure and soften the contact between parties who are not on an
equal footing. One is approached by the other at night; one lies in bed
while the other stands. Now, in Od. 15 the poet is varying the "dream
scene" in the direction of the "arrival." Both ayXov b' ErLoTalAev7 (9) and
eVpe (4) are typical "arrival" forms, the latter being the most common
verbal expression of Arend's third element.36 These "arrival"forms, which
establish direct contact between characters, combine with Athena's lack of
disguise and Telemachus' wakefulness (7) to portray a much bolder
encounter than a typical "dream scene" would have done. So strong a
meeting accords well with Telemachus' equally emphatic and sustained
reaction. He wants to leave Sparta immediately (44-47), and he avoids
further delay by not revisiting Nestor in Pylos (195ff.).37
Athena's lack of disguise is meaningful in still another regard. One of
the most consistent themes in the Odyssey is Athena's patronage of Odys-
seus and his family. Up to this point she has advised and assisted

35 An interesting variation of the standing above the head motif occurs in Odysseus'
vision of Penelope at Od. 20.93-94:
JAEPIA1jPLEb CEIreLra,
bOK7r?e8ceOLKara v.Obv
7jbtr yLyvwaCKOvCTarapeo-radtAeva Ke4paAh pLt.
The motif emphasizes the remoteness of this visionary encounter and is consistent with
the psychological distance which remains between Odysseus and Penelope.
36 For examples see above, note 8.
37 Compare with this scene Athena's visit to Odysseus in I1. 2 and Apollo's to Hector in
I!. 15. The standing and- speaking
elements are identical except for the noun and epithet
(Od. 15.9 = II. 2.172 15.243), all have edpe (Od. 15.4, II. 2.169 and 15.239), the god
arrives in each without disguise, and the reactions of Telemachus, Odysseus, and Hector
are faithful, immediate, and strong (II. 2.182ff. and 15.262ff.).
Telemachus' reaction to Athena's visit has long been criticized. For a good summary
of the objections and comment see D. Page (above, note 34) 79-80 notes 14 (3) and 14 (4).
For criticism of his meeting with Theoclymenus again see Page 83-88 and for answering
arguments see Fenik (above, note 19) 233ff.
 "Dream Scenes" in Homer 53

Telemachus but only in the guise of Mentor or Mentes. As Arend has

observed, gods appear in their own form only to their favorites.38 The
absence of disguise here, therefore, raises her patronage of him to a new
level and creates an important thematic link between Telemachus and his
father at the very point in the narrative where their reunion is imminent.
Although I have been at odds with Gunn and Arend in respect to
certain details, my arguments strengthen theirs. Gunn's aim is to deter-
mine whether certain themes which are common to both the Iliad and
Odyssey reveal stylistic differences which indicate separate authorship.
My demonstration that the standing and likeness elements in Od. 6 and
15 are neither exceptional nor irregular supports his argument for stylis-
tic consistency in the "supernatural visitant" theme in both the poems.
Arend establishes the structure of the "arrival" theme and shows how
Homer employs this standard form to create a variety of type-scenes. His
misplaced emphasis on the sleep of the visited person has been corrected,
and his typology of the "dream scene" has been refined to account for
the consistent and purposefully distributed patterns which the likeness
and description follow. The monologue scenes with their descriptions
following the visitant's arrival are employed to set passive characters in
motion and to initiate a narrative sequence whereas the dialogue scenes
with their descriptions preceding the visitant's arrival focus on the men-
tal state of characters who are active in a narrative sequence which is in
progress. Along with his regular and consistent use of these forms we
have seen how the poet varies their details for specific effects. In Od. 15
he substitutes "arrival" forms for "dream" forms and omits the visitant's
likeness to generate a bolder meeting and a stronger reaction. In Od. 6
he elaborates the visitant's arrival and departure with the brief history of
the Phaeacians, a statement of purpose, and a description of Olympus in
order to signify Odysseus' passage into a more secure, humane world as
he returns home. In Od. 20 he masterfully employs states of wakefulness
and sleep both to depict Odysseus' tense mental state on the night before
he is to destroy the suitors and to illuminate the complex mixture of
proximity and distance which exists between Odysseus and Penelope as
the time for their reunion as husband and wife approaches. In sum, in
the aspects of these scenes examined in this study we see Homer firmly
in control of his traditional forms.

'3 Scenen 56, note 2.

54 James F. Morris

APPENDIX: Structural Outlines

Dialogue Scenes:
Od. 4 Od. 20 I1. 23

Night & Retiring 786-88a 19.600- 58

20.4
Description 788b-94 5-30a 59-64
Arriving 795-96a 30b-31a 65
799, 802
Likeness 796b-98 31b 66-67
Standing 803a 32a 68a
Speaking 803b-38a 32b-54 68b-99a
Departing 838b-39a 55 10b-lOla
Reaction 839b-41 56-57a lOlb-7
Dawn 5.1-2 91 109-lOa

Monologue Scenes:
Od. 6 Od. 15 11.2 II. 24

Night & Retiring 5.481b- 14.518- 1.605- 673-81

6.2a 33 2.16a cf. 351
Arriving 2b-3, 13 1-2a 16b-18a lacking
15a, 20 cf. 345-47a
Description 15b-19 4-8 18b-19 cf. 673-74
Standing 21a 9a 20a 682a
Likeness 22-24a lacking 20b-22a lacking
cf. 347b-48
Speaking 21b, 24b- 9b-43a 22b-35a 682b-89a
41a, 47b
Departure 41b-47a 43b 35b 692-94
cf. 468
Reaction 48-49 44ff. 36ff. 689b
Dawn 48 56 48 695